Suffice it to say that I’m not a techie. That being said, I won’t attempt to explain any technical aspects of these players.
What I will focus will be on Blu-Ray Disc players instead of DVD only players because:
- Blu-Ray players can play all of your DVDs as well as Blu-ray Discs.
- Many of the old movies are available on DVDs and Blu-ray Discs.
- Blu-ray Discs offer an HD experience that is not possible with just a DVD.
- Blu-ray players have some capability of enhancing the DVD picture.
However, the full 4K experience requires a 4K UHD TV and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray discs or 4K streaming content.
The players I am showing you seem to be among the best available in their price ranges.
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First Product –
Sony UBP-X700 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Player
- The fantastic visual clarity of 4K Ultra HD Blu ray
- Play almost any disc and file format
- Stunning picture with 4K upscaling up to 60p. Power Consumption: 15 Watt in Operation 0.35 Watt in Standby
- Hear the way the artists truly intended with Hi-Res Audio
- Listen to music from multiple formats
- Dual HDMI outputs for A/V separation and clearer sound
The Price is $149.00 and available from Amazon
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Second Product –
Yamaha AVENTAGE BD-A1060BL Blu-ray Disc Player
- Built-in Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Direct
- 4K Ultra HD video upscaling
- Compatible with XLR terminals and balanced transmission. Media Compatibility- DLNA, USB, BD-ROM/BD-R/BD-RE (BD-Video), DVD-ROM (DVD-Video), DVD-R/DVD-R DL/DVD-RW (DVD-Video/DVD-VR/AVCHD), DVD+R/DVD+R DL/DVD+RW (DVD-Video/DVD-VR/AVCHD), CD-ROM (CDDA/HDCD), CD-R/CD-RW (CDDA), SA-CD. File Compatibility- [VIDEO]- MKV with H.264, MPEG PS, MPEG TS, MPEG-4, VOB, AVI, ASF, WMV [AUDIO]: MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV, FLAC, ALAC, DSDIFF, DSF [PHOTO]- JPEG, GIF, PNG. Blu-ray 3D Compatibility- Yes
- Supports various disc formats and high-resolution audio reproduction
- Miracast compatibility; VUDU and Dropbox network sources available
The price is $549.95 from Amazon
Third Product –
Sony – Streaming 4K Ultra HD Hi-Res Audio Wi-Fi Built-In Blu-Ray Player – Black
- True 4K Ultra HD
- Play 4K Ultra HD movies at 4x the resolution of full 1080p HD, letting you watch your favorite scenes with a level of detail and clarity like never before.
- Dolby Vision
- Bring scenes to life with striking highlights, deeper darks, and vibrant colors. Dolby Vision is an HDR solution that creates an immersive, engaging cinematic experience in your home.
- The way the artists truly intended
- enjoy the subtlest nuances of studio-quality sound in higher than CD quality with High-Resolution Audio. Passion for music unites every component from signal to speaker so it feels like the artist is performing right in front of you.
- Blu-ray player
- For high-definition movie playback with resolution up to 5 times greater than DVD. Watch films in stunning high-definition just like you do on the big screen.
- Upconvert DVDs
- Delivers greatly enhanced video performance of standard DVDs by upconverting their video resolution to HDTV-compliant up to 4K via the HDMI interface.
- 3D technology
- So you can experience full 3D content when you pair this Blu-ray player with a 3D HDTV.
- Built-in Wi-Fi
- For access to streaming content and firmware updates.
- Ethernet port
- Enables a simple wired network connection.
- Playable formats
- Include CD-R/RW, SACD, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD, CD, BD-RE, BD-ROM, DVD-R DL, BD-R DL, CD-DA, BD-R TL, BMP, GIF, JPEG, PNG, MPO, WEBP.
- It also supports AAC, AIFF, MP3, FLAC, LPCM, APE, HE-AAC, WMA 10 Pro, WMA 9, DSD, ALAC, Vorbis, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, XviD, WMV9, VC-1, AVCHD, AVC, HEVC, VP6, VP8, VP9 and Motion JPEG formats.
- 2 HDMI outputs
- the high-speed HDMI cable is the only connection that can deliver a Blu-ray experience with a full 1080p picture and digital surround sound.
- BRAVIA Theater Sync
- Lets you link compatible home theater components for simplified use.
- Miracast technology
- It makes it easy to mirror your Android smartphone’s screen on your TV.
Full 4K experience requires a 4K UHD TV and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray discs or 4K streaming content.
The price is $179.99 from Best Buy.
Fourth Product – Big Bang For the Buck – Sony BDPS6700 4K Upscaling 3D Streaming Blu-Ray Disc Player (Black)
- Inputs/Outputs: 1 HDMI, 1 USB, 1 Coaxial, 1 Ethernet. Features built-in wifi 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz with mimo
- Smart Functionality: With built-in Wi-Fi, you can wirelessly access popular streaming apps and services including Netflix,
- YouTube, Amazon Instant Video & more.
- 4K Upscaling: Get the most out of your 4K Ultra HD TV by upscaling the quality of your Blu-ray movies to near 4K quality.
- 4K Ultra HD discs are not supported.
- The upscaling chip also improves the quality of online content and upconverts DVD’s to near HD quality for an improved viewing experience
- Sound: Experience HD sound with Dolby and DTS-Master Audio. Enjoy multi-room streaming capabilities with the SongPal Link Apps, and connect via Bluetooth to enjoy wireless listening.
- Screen Mirroring: View your Android mobile devices’ content on your TV with Miracast screen mirroring technology.
- Front USB Port: Enjoy your videos, photos and digital music with USB connectivity. Power Consumption: 12 W
- DLNA Home sharing: DLNA allows you to share multimedia content across all supported devices in your home
The price is $89.99 from Best Buy
View Comments
Very good post you have put up here on this very good topic. I did not know that there is any difference between the normal player and the blue ray player. I do not use a blue ray player but I will be more than glad to try it out especially because I will enjoy the 4k picture quality.
Thank you. This is very helpful.
Just remember that the TV cannot show a better picture than it is capable of. i.e. Older TVs do not have 4K capability.
Hello Dane, this is a very good information you have tabled here. I like the fact that you can first tell us about all the difference that there is in a DVD player and the blue ray player. I am happy that they can also play normal DVDs as well. I like the first on your list because even with all that is offered, it still comes at a relatively low price. Thanks.
You are very welcome. Thank you.
Hi, I like the fourth blu-ray player, but which one do you recommend? I have never used a blu-ray player before, but I hear that the viewing quality is excellent. What exactly is screen mirroring? I am not sure what it means ... I am not much of a techie either ;-) I love the DLNA home sharing option. I had never heard of that, but that one just sounds awesome. Maybe I should get a blu-ray.
I suggest the fourth one. Unless you are extremely interested in the best possible quality picture, sound etc, this one is quite adequate.
Thank you.